Railway-signal.



` No. 785,098.' l 1 ATP1111EDI MAR. 21, 1905.

411.11. HANLON.

RAILWAY SIGNAL.`

APPLIOATIQN FILED AUG. 11,1904

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N0. 785,098. f I PATENTED MAR. 21., 1905'.v

M. D. HAN-LUN. l

RAILWAY SIGNAL., APPLIOATION FILED AUG. 11.1904.

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IIIHII PATENTBD MAR. 21, 1905.

. M. D. HANLON.

RAILWAY SIGNAL.

APPLIOATION FILED AUG.11.1904.

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vea ATTORNEY www. MW/ www W UNITED STATES Patented March 21, A1905.`

PATENT OFFICE.

MARQUIS yD. HANLON, OF WILKINSBURG, PENNSYLVANIA, ASSIGNOR TO THE UNIONSWITCH AND SIGNAL COMPANY, OF SWISSVALE, PENN- SYLVANIA, A CORPORATIONOF PENNSYLVANIA. i

RAILWAY-SIGNAL.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent N0. 785,098, dated March21, 1905. Application filed August 1], 1904. Serial No. 220,351.

To all whom it may concern:

My invention relates to railway-signals, and.

particularly to that class of railway-signals in 1 o which the motivepower therefor is in the form of Huid-pressure.

I will describe a railway-signal embodying` my invention and then pointout the novel features thereof in claims.

I In the accompanying drawings, Figure l is a vertical sectional view ofa portion of a railway-signal embodying my invention and showing moreparticularly the operating mechanism thereof. lThe several parts of the2o operating mechanism are in the positions they occupy when the signaldevice of the railwaysignal is in a position indicating dangen Fig. 2 isa view similar to Fig. l, but taken in a plane at right angles to theplane of section of Fig. l. Fig. 3 is a transverse sectional view takenon .the line 3 3 of Fig. l. Fig. 4 is a transverse sectional view takenon the line 4 4 of Fig. 2. Fig. 5 is a detail view. Fig. is a detailhorizontal sectional view taken on 3o the line 6 6 of Fig. l, showing anarrangement of ports and passages for the supply of fluidpressure todifferent fluid-pressure apparatus comprised in the operating mechanism.Fig. 7 is a view similar to Figs. l and 2, drawn to 3 5 a smaller scale,but showing the several parts in the positions they occupy whenv thesignal device is in a position indicating clear or safety Fig. 8 is adetail view.

Similar letters of reference designate corresponding parts in all of thefigures.

I will premise that wherever I herein use the term signal I mean toinclude any visual-signal device which by its color or by its positionrelatively to its support gives indications of the service conditions ofthe railroadtrack or section of railroad-track which it governs, alsowherever Iuse the term fluidpressure I mean a liquid or gas underpressure. I preferably employ a gas. Any gas may be employed*forexample, air or carbonic acid gas-and under any pressure which'issuiicient or more than suficient to operate the apparatus employed formoving the signal device. If the pressure of the gas is above thatrequired for the operation of the 5 5 apparatus employed in therailway-signal, reducing-valves may be employed in their proper places.An auxiliary reservoir may also be employed between the reducing-valveand the fluid-pressure apparatus.

A (see Fig. 7) designates a visual signal, here shown as beingasemaphore, and comprising,

'as usual, a blade a and a counterweight a.

The counterweight a' is adapted when the v semaphore is free to move onits pivot a2 to 65 move the blade a, to a horizontal position,whichposition generally indicates danger or stop when the railway-signal isplaced in service beside a railway. In this invention the blade a ismoved from its horizontal posi- 7o tion to an inclined position by afluid-pressure apparatus through the medium of a verticallyarranged rodB, generally termed an up-anddown rod. When in an inclined position, theblade indicates safety or caution The rod B is operatively connectedwith the semaphore at one end and with the piston of the fluid-pressureapparatus at its other end.

D designates a fluidpressure apparatus which is employed for moving thesignalfrom 8o one position of indication to another-that is, from ahorizontal position to an inclined position. It is here shown as beingin the form of a motor comprising a piston CZ and a cylinder d', withinwhich the piston moves. The 8 5 motor is mounted on a base d2, supportedon and secured to suitable brackets. The base d2 is provided with apassage cl3', which is in communication with a controllable source ofHuid-pressure supply, a passage d* in com- 9o munication with thepassage (Z3, and a second fluid-pressure apparatus E, to be hereinaftermore particularly described, a passage d5 in communication with thepassage d3 and with a chamber (Z6 through va port (Z7, and a passage (ZSleading from the chamber (ZG to a passage UZ, which latter passage opensinto the cylinder (Z beneath the piston. A doubleacting valve F, to behereinafter referred to, located in the chamber (Z6, upon positiveoperation in opposite directions opens and closes the passage (Z'5 andport (Z 7 to control the supply of Huid-pressure to the cylinder OZ andan exhaust passage or port (Z 1, leading from the chamber (Z to theatmosphere. The valve F is so arranged that when the port (Z7 is closedthe passage (Z 1 is opened, and vice versa. Fluid-pressure for operatingthe apparatuses D and E may be supplied from any suitable source througha pipe or conduit @10, which is in communication with the passage (Z3,and its flow through the passage (Z 3 is under the control of anelectrically-operated valve device G. This valve device may convenientlybe substantially of the form and arrangement illustrated and describedin United States Letters Patent No. 357,109, issued February 1, 1887, toGeorge Westinghouse, J r., to which patent reference may be had fordetails of construction and operation. It is only necessary to herestate that the electricallyoperated valve device should have thefunctions of opening the supply of huid-pressure when the coil g5,comprised in the device, is energized and of closing or cutting off thesupply of fluid-pressure when said coil is deenergized and of opening anexhaust port or passage through which the used Huid-pressure may escapeto the atmosphere. Any electrically operated valve device having thesefunctions may be employed. The fluidpressure passes around the valve g,comprised in the valve device G, into a passage g', which is incommunication with the passage (Z 3. The valve g2, comprised in thevalve device G, controls the escape of gas from the passages (Z3 and (Z4to the atmosphere through a port g3. The valves g and (/2 are soarranged that when one is seated the other is unseated or opened, andvice Versa.

In this invention the fluid-pressure apparatus D is designed to move thesignal (in this example the blade (Z) from one position of indicationtoanother, preferably from the danger position of indication to thesafety or clear position of indication, by a single upward stroke of thepiston (Z. After the signal has been moved by the piston OZ it is lockedand held against return movement by suitable lookingl means operatedfrom the liuid-pessure apparatus E. The fluid-pressure apparatus E, ashere shown, comprises a diaphragm e, located in a chamber formed in partby a portion of the under side of the base (Z2, and a cap-plate e, whichparts also serve to hold the peripheral edge portion of the diaphragm.The diaphragm is provided with a projection (f2, which bears upon andmoves a lever e3 when Huid-pressure is admitted onto the diaphragmthrough the passage (Z 4. The ends of the pin e* are mounted in thebrackets supporting the base (Z2.

The locking means here shown comprises a pawl 03 and a lever 0*, whichis preferably in the form of a bell-crank lever. The pawl c3 is arrangedon a pin 012, which is mounted at its ends in the stem of the piston,which, as shown, is in the form of a cylinder C2, in such manner as tohave a swinging movement. The pawl (3 is limited in its radial movementin one direction on the pin cl2 by a projection c2", which may beintegral with the pistonstem. The lever c4 is arranged on a pin (2,which is mounted in such manner as to have a rocking movement in somefixed part of the railway-signal-for example, a casing C, suitablymounted on the upper end of the cylinder (Z'. The pin extends throughelongated openings c', provided in the piston-stem, in order that thepiston and the parts connected therewith may have movement withouthindrance by the pin c2. The lever c4 is provided with a roller 05,which when the piston has completed its upward stroke to move thesemaphore on its pivot, and with it the pawl c?,

moves beneath a shoulder (21, provided on the pawl. (See Fig. 7.) Thelever c4 is rocked by the Huid-pressure apparatus E through the lever e3and a rod e5. The eliecti've position of the locking means is shown inFig. 7 In this position the rod B, piston (Z, and pawl (3 under theinfluence of the counterweight (Z act downwardly to restore the piston(Z to the bottom of the cylinder (Z' and the blade (Z to its horizontalposition. Such action, however, is prevented by the lever c* and rod e5so long as fluid-pressure is acting on the diaphragm e. By reason of therelation of the journal of the roller c5 to the centers of the pins cl2c2, it lying outside of a line drawn through the centers of the pins cl2c2, the weight (Z of the semaphore,` rod B, and piston, &c., istransmitted through the pawl c to the periphery of the roller c5 andthrough its journal-pin to the pin (2 of the lever c4 and tends to forcethe lever c" outward and the pawl coutward with the roller c5 and tobring a toe portion cl3 on the pawl c3 into engagement with the leverc4. The pawl 03, roller c5, the lever 04, and its pin c2 form, ineffect, a toggle-joint. When the diaphragm is relieved from pressure,the lever c4 moves outward on its pivot c2, and with it the pawl c3,thus bringing the toe portion cl3 against the lever c4. In consequenceof this the roller c5 is moved from under the pawl and revolving ceasesto support the pawl, which, swinging clear of the lever c4 and roller c,descends with the rod B. The rod B under the influence of thecounterweight a forces the piston to the bottom of the, cylinder andmoves the blade (L to its horizontal position, which indicates danger.The parts are then in the positions shown in Figs. land 2.

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In order to provide for cutting off the 'supply of Huid-pressure to thecylinder after the lever c4 has been moved under the pawl c3 and stillretain the Huid-pressure on the diaphragm to render the locking meanseffective, I providethe valve F and operate it through independent meansfrom the fluid-pressure apparatus E. These independent means preferablycomprise a block H and a spring es, carried thereby. The stem f2 of thevalve rests on the spring e8, or it may be provided with an adjustablestirrup f3, (see Fig. 8,) in which the spring es extends, and when theblock H is moved by the diaphragm the valve F will be moved to shut orout off the supply of Huid-pressure from the cylinder. As soon as thediaphragm is relieved from fluid-pressure a spring e, here shown assurrounding the stem of the valve, acts to move the valve F to close thepassage d10 and open the port d. The block H is located in a slot e1",provided in the lever e3, and is so arranged therein that the projectione2 bears on it, as well as the adjacent end of the lever e3. By thisarrangement the valve Fcan be positively actuated independently of thesignal or its operating mechanism or its movement and only when thesignal has been completely moved.

The valve F is located in the chamber d and is shown as being providedwith a stem f2 and two valve-faces ff', one, f, to open and close theport Z7 and the other, f', to open and close the entrance to the passaged10, which leads to the atmosphere.

The operation of the valve F by the Huidpressure apparatus E is asfollows: When the parts of the railway-signal are 1n the positions shownin Figs. l and 2 upon the energization of the coil comprised in thevalve device G,

the valve g2 will be closed and the valve g opened. Fluid-pressure willthen flow through the passages CZi3 and el'LV to the diaphragm e andthrough passages d5, port CZ?, past the valvef, which will be in itsopen position, (see Fig. 2,) into the chamber Zand through the passagesd8 d" into the cylinder d under the piston LZ, thereby causing thepiston to.

block H is actuated by the diaphragm to positively move the valve F toclose the port 7, and thereby shut off the supply of fluid-pressure tothe cylinder and open the exhaustpassage 0310, so that the Huid-pressurein the cylinder beneath the piston may exhaust to the atmosphere. Whenthe supply of Huidpressure is cut o from above the diaphragm, and thisis'due to a denergization of the coil comprised in the valve device G,the lever ci will move from beneath the pawl, and in doing so it causesthe lever e3 to rock downward. The spring e also acts at this time toopen the valve F and return the operating parts of the valve F to thepositions shown in Fig. 2.

The coil of the valve device is included in a circuit which may beopened or closed in any desired manner-for example, by the armature or'a relay, the coils of which are included in a track or other circuit.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim is* 1. In arailway-signal, the combination of a signal; a {luid-pressure apparatusfor moving the signal; means for locking the signal in the position towhich it has been moved;4 a fluid pressure apparatus for moving saidmeans; aiuid-pressu re supply for both of said apparatuses; a valve forcutting off the supply of iiuid-pressure to the irst-mentioned.

{luid-pressure apparatus after the signal has been moved and locked; andmeans, independent of the signal and its huid-pressure apparatus andmeans for locking the signal, actuated by the Huid-pressure apparatus ofthe locking means for operating said valve to close it.

2. In a railway-signal, the combination of asignal; a fluid-pressureapparatus for moving the signal; means for locking the signal in theposition to which it has been moved; a

fluid-pressure apparatus for moving said means; a iiuid-pressure supplyfor both of said apparatuses; avalve for cutting 0H.2 the supply offluid-pressure to the first-mentioned fluid-pressure apparatus after thesignal has been-moved and locked; means, independent of the signal andits Huid-pressure apparatus and means for locking the signal, actuatedby the Huid-pressure apparatus of the locking means for operating saidvalve to close it, and a spring for operating the valve to open it.

In testimony whereo'il I have signed my name' to this specification inthe presence oi' two subscribed witnesses.

y MARQUIS D. HANLON. Witnesses:

A. HERMAN WEGNER, FREDERICK A. BOOTH.

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